Abstract
Natural products have been a great source of many small molecule drugs for various diseases. In spite of recent advances in biochemical engineering and fermentation technologies that allow us to explore microorganisms and the marine environment as alternative sources of drugs, more than 70% of the current small molecule therapeutics derive their structures from plants used in traditional medicine. Natural-product-based drug discovery relies heavily on advances made in the sciences of biology and chemistry. Whereas biology aims to investigate the mode of action of a natural product, chemistry aims to overcome challenges related to its supply, bioactivity, and target selectivity. This review summarizes the explorations of the caged Garcinia xanthones, a family of plant metabolites that possess a unique chemical structure, potent bioactivities, and a promising pharmacology for drug design and development.
Introduction
The trees of the genus Garcinia belong to the family of Guttiferae (Clusiaceae) and are found mostly in lowland rainforests of India, Indochina, Indonesia, West and Central Africa, and Brazil. They are slow-growing polygamous trees that produce scented flowers and fruits that often contain a fleshy, edible endocarp. Throughout the years Garcinia trees have retained considerable value as sources for medicines, pigments, gums, waxes, resins, foodstuffs (fruit), fuel (wood, seed oil), and lumber. Arguably, the most widely cultivated and well-known Garcinia tree is Garcinia mangostana. It yields one of the most highly prized tropical fruits, the mangosteen, valued for its delicious endocarp and rind, both of which are thought to have medicinal potential.
The utility of the Garcinia trees in the arts and sciences is well documented. In fact, gamboge, the pulverized gold-colored resin collected primarily from Garcinia hanburyi, and to a lesser extent from Garcinia morella, has a particularly long and rich history in the arts and sciences. For instance, the yellow colorant used on 8th century artifacts from East Asia is presumed to be a gamboge-based water-color. The importation of gamboge in Europe took place in the 15–16th century where it was used mainly as a coloring material by Flemish painters. In fact, this pigment has been noted on a painting by Rembrandt, currently found in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Museum in Dresden.The toxicity of gamboge was also noted early on and several accounts warn against licking brushes containing gamboge. In the recent years, gamboge has been utilized primarily for research on identification of biologically active substances. Nonetheless, it is worth noting that Jean Baptiste Perrin used a colloidal suspension of gamboge particles to investigate Brownian motion and derive a value for the Avogadro number in a series of experiments that gave him the Nobel Prize in physics in 1926.
Resource: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Resource: http://www.nutritionforest.com/
Natural products have been a great source of many small molecule drugs for various diseases. In spite of recent advances in biochemical engineering and fermentation technologies that allow us to explore microorganisms and the marine environment as alternative sources of drugs, more than 70% of the current small molecule therapeutics derive their structures from plants used in traditional medicine. Natural-product-based drug discovery relies heavily on advances made in the sciences of biology and chemistry. Whereas biology aims to investigate the mode of action of a natural product, chemistry aims to overcome challenges related to its supply, bioactivity, and target selectivity. This review summarizes the explorations of the caged Garcinia xanthones, a family of plant metabolites that possess a unique chemical structure, potent bioactivities, and a promising pharmacology for drug design and development.
Introduction
The trees of the genus Garcinia belong to the family of Guttiferae (Clusiaceae) and are found mostly in lowland rainforests of India, Indochina, Indonesia, West and Central Africa, and Brazil. They are slow-growing polygamous trees that produce scented flowers and fruits that often contain a fleshy, edible endocarp. Throughout the years Garcinia trees have retained considerable value as sources for medicines, pigments, gums, waxes, resins, foodstuffs (fruit), fuel (wood, seed oil), and lumber. Arguably, the most widely cultivated and well-known Garcinia tree is Garcinia mangostana. It yields one of the most highly prized tropical fruits, the mangosteen, valued for its delicious endocarp and rind, both of which are thought to have medicinal potential.
The utility of the Garcinia trees in the arts and sciences is well documented. In fact, gamboge, the pulverized gold-colored resin collected primarily from Garcinia hanburyi, and to a lesser extent from Garcinia morella, has a particularly long and rich history in the arts and sciences. For instance, the yellow colorant used on 8th century artifacts from East Asia is presumed to be a gamboge-based water-color. The importation of gamboge in Europe took place in the 15–16th century where it was used mainly as a coloring material by Flemish painters. In fact, this pigment has been noted on a painting by Rembrandt, currently found in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Museum in Dresden.The toxicity of gamboge was also noted early on and several accounts warn against licking brushes containing gamboge. In the recent years, gamboge has been utilized primarily for research on identification of biologically active substances. Nonetheless, it is worth noting that Jean Baptiste Perrin used a colloidal suspension of gamboge particles to investigate Brownian motion and derive a value for the Avogadro number in a series of experiments that gave him the Nobel Prize in physics in 1926.
Resource: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Resource: http://www.nutritionforest.com/
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